A writer's look at the quilting and quilt art community and anything else fabric.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Extinguish burnout with quilting passion

One glimpse of Karen McTavish's smiling face, especially after receiving Teacher of the Year award from MQX, you know she has passion aplenty. The photo captures the excitement at the Machine Quilting Expo in Manchester, New Hampshire, April 2008. This award is presented to instructors who have made an impact on the longarm industry in the prior year. Karen's quilting holds testament to her passion for the craft. One look at her quilts and there's no doubt she's dripping talent and innovative creativity. But she has multi-passions. Her family most definitely, and her music. When not quilting, writing books about quilting, judging, or teaching groups and individuals the art of quilting, Karen performs with her heavy metal band "Grounds for Dismissal."

Note her 'passion' for tattoos that reflect her quilting patterns as can be seen on her upper arms.

Photo: Silver Threads Shadow Trapunto - this award winning trapunto quilt was a combined effort with her mother, Janet McTavish who had a dream and asked Karen to come up with a design to surround Janet's silver hand embrodiery work. This quilt has taken Viewer's Choice at the Minnesota State Quilt Show in 2007. The shadow work uses black velvet under batiste.

And now the guest blog in Karen's own words:

Quilting is(or should be) passion.

If you don't have passion - you wont get anything done when it comes to quilting.This is especially true if you have too many ugly quilt projects that you are no longer in love with - you will "burn out."

Dudes, you have all been there - let's talk about it. For example, if you have a teenager who is skipping school or a son who is playing video games 13 hours a day - you will want to quilt to escape this situation. Or if you have too many dishes, or you can't face cooking another meal for your family - you need an outlet - which, my friend - is quilting.

So - too avoid household chores, - we quilt.

To stay sane, we quilt - and avoid our responsibilities as good parents who have out of control children, we quilt.

You will know you are burned out on quilting when you would rather scrub the floor than go applique'.

You will know you are burned out on quilting, when you would rather bring your daughter to her AA meeting than quilt.

Here is a list of things to do in order for you to avoid "quilters burn out": -

Never, I mean, ALWAYS - get obsessed with your quilt project. The quilt you are obsessed with, always gets finished.

Remind yourself that if you stop working on this quilt project, it will add to the other projects that are half way done, and this one will never get done and it wont happen again!

Keep your eyes on the prize - never think about how long a quilt will take to complete - stay in denial as long as possible.

When you give that amazing quilt to a friend or family member, who says "Thanks for the blanket".....do not get burned out - simply use this as an excuse to cut them out of your life. Forever. They were never really part of the family anyway.

When your sister, gets kicked off a plane, for not shutting off her computer, and you are now the official "good daughter" because you have never been escorted off a mid-air flight - you get to feel like a supreme being, a much better human being than say....I dont know...your sister....you can run around buying thread and fabric, knowing in your heart you deserve this - because you are after all, the better daughter.

Always, I mean, NEVER, worry about how much things cost, or whether you need them or not....you will eventually need them, you just don't know it yet.

When you are truly, in a burn out situations - I highly recommend a big ass pair of scissors just to cut your batting with. Having these scissors will make you feel special.

And if you forget that you are special -- remember, you have not been escorted off a plane by Air Marshals.

Longarm machine quilting allows Karen to combine her two passions: Wholecloth and Trapunto. She specialize in crafting award-winning heirloom quilts using techniques which allow machine quilters to replicate traditional hand-quilted effects. Karen have been featured on PBS Quilt Central, and HGTV Simply Quilts. Her work has appeared in Joanne Line's books, Quilts from the Quilt Makers Gift #1 and #2, Helen Squire's Mix and Match Patterns and numerous national magazines and journals. Karen has authored four books in four years with On-Word Bound Books. For information on books and other products please see www.designerquilts.com

Karen has been a full-time professional longarm quilter since 1997. She works and teaches from her studio and travel all over the country teaching McTavishing, Trapunto, Wholecloth Design and advanced longarm machine quilting workshops. If you are interested in taking in a class please contact me at any time. She lives in Duluth, MN with her family - Dan, her partner, daughter Allison (20) and son Storm (age 3).

Pumpkin Art!

Sherry Rogers-Harrison has taken her ink pens and chose a new pallet -- a pumpkin. She suggests a faux pumpkin makes for a better canvas than the real deal. What are you creating this Halloween? Autumn art?

Graffiti art by Rayna Gillman

My urban pieces have been part of my work for a decade. I shoot graffiti photos wherever I go and I have include them in my pieces very often. This is my most recent piece, Broken Dreams, which is now hanging in Form not Function at the Carnegie Art Center. The text and images are graffiti photos I have taken in New York, Phildelphia, Paris, and London.

Tesselation Nation

Wow! Wow! Wow! Have you seen this blog? Tesselation Nation by Raymond Houston will inspire you and give you the tools to make your own tesselation patterned quilt! Definitely worth a visit or a bookmark to visit again and again!

A touch of beauty: Wallflowers

This seemed to fill a need. When I saw it I had to smile and then I had to share it with everyone! It is lovely and made by Diane Evans. Click on the photo to visit her blog. She entered this in the Online Bloggers Quilt Show

Helen Remick's YoYo Tricks!

A show of 16 of Helen's quilts is at the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum, 703 South 2nd Street, La Conner, WA. Quilts will be on display now through December 31. Hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm. Click on photo to go to the museum web site. Helen's class, New Yoyo Tricks, will be on November 8 from 10 to 2. It includes lunch and a private exhibit tour. Remick and students will make altered yoyos and explore their design possibilities. Cost for museum members is $55, for non-members $65. You can make reservations by calling the museum at 360-466-4288. Shown is YoYo 2 -- Trip Around the World.

Fish 'n Baskets Quilt

This is perhaps the most amazing quilt I've ever encountered and am happy to call it my own. Just recently discovered that my Great Grandmother pieced the top in around 1870.

Stairway to Cat Heaven -- WE FOUND IT!

We are in luck. A dear Subversive Stitcher -- Holly -- found a link to access the archived pattern. Click on the picture to go to the pattern link. THANKS HOLLY!!!! Obviously this is a favorite for several of you. I get at least two requests a week for this pattern.

Heart of a Tree....

Lorraine Roy created this piece in 2002 as part of a solo travelling exhibition inspired by rare an endangered tree species in the Canadian Carolinian zone of Ontario (where she was born and still lives). She writes, "This particular species, native Flowering Dogwood, is best known for its beautiful white spring blooms, but I portrayed in full red fall colour. Why? In my research on this tree, I discovered that the Native people used decoctions from its fruit as a heart medicine. The name Dogwood originates from its former name, Daggerwood... because its very hard, resilient trunk and branches were used in making daggers. Combine this with the plant's resplendent fall colour, in leaf and berry... and the love we all feel for this endangered species... and you have all the elements necessary for the heart motif connected by the 'coursing blood and veins' of the tree's roots."

Every Beat Has a History

Canadian artist Arlee Barr offers up an unusual 'heart' for this holiday season. I've included two photos, one is a closeup of her work. Click on the full size photo to visit her blog.

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Need a present for a special woman in your life?

A friend sent me this photo and I just had to share it with you. I have been thinking of giving scarves as gifts this Christmas. This wasn't exactly what I had in mind. But its a thought. :) I don't have a link or directions, but I bet you can figure it out! Of course other Subversive Stitchers suggested a Google search for 'boob scarves' and that opens the door to amazing and crazy crafts. One article pictures a variety of crafts gone wild. Just click on the photo

The Knitted Convenience

I adore underground stitchers -- subversive to the max!!! And these certainly qualify. See what they've done to public facilities (bathrooms) in Sydney!!

New Gadget: Followers

Blogger now offers a 'followers' option. People can publicly or privately sign up and be alerted to updates made to this site. Below are the buttons to click to sign up.

Followers

Longarm or hand quilting patterns

A variety of free patterns and more designed by Theo van der Heijden

NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART Podcasts

This website for the National Gallery of Art podcasts was recently mentioned at Quilting Arts and it looks fascinating -- lectures on all aspects of art. Maybe inspire the next of your own works.

Flour resist

Thanks to suggestions from my Playing with Paint experience, and excellent step by step directions from Bridget's Matchbook Blog, I spent a fun morning with a new resist (new to me) -- a flour resist that has turned out to be quite fun (and messy -- in a good way). It gave me a reason to get my old cake decorating tools out and just have fun. Click on the photo to get the directions.

Grand Gobbler Turkey

Looking for a fun Thanksgiving project that may get the kids and grownups thinking about what they're thankful for? Check out Sewing.org for this adorable project

Great teaching videos

Sharon Schamber's website/network has detailed videos for various techniques. One is free for February on using Piece-lique technique to sew a leaf. Great info for doing curved piecing and small areas

Crazy Quilters Alert

Check out this informative and nicely crafted site with information that will benefit not only crazy quilters

Have you heard of Zentangle?

A form of intuitive art (maybe a new form of doodling?)

What a great gallery of fabric art: Check out what's being done

Fiber Vision, a group of fabric artists are creating some vibrant and unusual and delightful art. This is one of today's ah-ha moments!

Best Breast

I couldn't resist. I have no self control. I saw this article and had to share it with everyone -- knitter or not I think you'll enjoy it. It's a contest, by the way -- knit your own breast.

Odd bits: Knit a chicken sweater (jumper)

Little Hen Rescue in Norwich, England rescues chickens from battery barns. I first heard about this group when they requested knitted jumpers for the featherless, stressed out birds. Click on the image to find out more about knitting for chickens and their efforts to save these birds.